The New York City Marathon:
It Will Move You.

The TCS New York City Marathon is the largest marathon in the world, bringing together all five boroughs, more than 50,000 runners, and millions of viewers around the world. The race’s organizers, The New York Road Runners (NYRR), asked us to create a campaign that didn’t just promote the event, but honored the people behind it — the runners, the volunteers, and the people cheering them on.

Our campaign, It Will Move You™, sought to capture the energy and excitement of the marathon through the application, training, and race-day pushes.

The Build Up:

Marathon training is a months-long commitment, and we used that time to stay connected with participants. We shared stories about both in-person and virtual training through NYRR, encouraging runners and helping them prepare.

We created a social series, Team #MovedMe profiling runners from different walks of life, each with their own reason for running and connection to the race.

2017 saw the historic finish of Shalane Flanagan, the first American Woman to win the New York City Marathon since 1977, generating an immense Building off the excitement for her return, we created a series highlighting the record breaking women all running the race.

Tune-In Campaign:

Virtual Cheer Cards

Nothing can compare to the roar of the crowds cheering on runners across all 5 boroughs, but not everyone can make it to the city to cheer.

Working with NYRR’s technology partner, Tata Consultancy Services, we built a component on the NYC Marathon app that let people create digital cheer cards.

Using the optical sensors for runners tracking their progress, these cards were displayed on outdoor screens during the race as a runner approached, giving them a real-time boost from friends and family around the world.